Mara Yamauchi Unfazed By 13th-Place Showing

Mara Yamauchi thinks her best days are still ahead of her. Photo: Photorun.net

Mara Yamauchi thinks her best days are still ahead of her. Photo: PhotoRun.net

The British marathoner thinks her best days are still ahead of her.

Mara Yamauchi was one of the top contenders for the win at the ING New York City Marathon last weekend. She ended up placing 13th there, running 2:31:38–far short of expectations. Still, Yamauchi is unfazed and optimistic about her career.

“My best isn’t behind me, my career isn’t over and I can improve. I’ll produce better performances leading up to 2012,” she said.

Yamauchi, who lives in Japan with her husband, admitted her showing in New York wasn’t what she’d expected.

“It hasn’t been a good year for me and it wasn’t a great day in New York. But you pick yourself up and carry on,” she admitted. One of Britain’s best marathoners is now looking forward to the spring marathoning season where she’ll try to qualify for the 2012 Olympics in her home country.

Duncan Larkin

Duncan Larkin is a freelance journalist and author who’s been covering the sport of running for over a decade. He’s run 2:32 in the marathon and won the Himalayan 100-Mile Stage Race in 2007. He wrote the book RUN SIMPLE, and coaches runners of all abilities.
You can learn more about him here: http://roadsmillslaps.tumblr.com/about